—The X-Factor—
by rayningnight

Disclaimers: So. Not mine.

Summary: He isn't his father's pride or his mama's joy. But it's fine. Tsuna doesn't want the attention. He doesn't want to be the heir to an infamous Italian mafia empire. He doesn't want to be the role-model student and parent's dream child. Those are his siblings' spots — precious family that he's grown to love ever since he's been dumped in this parallel world. AU. Time Travel.

General Warnings: Tsuna-centric. GEN. Contains violence, coarse language (mostly Gokudera and Xanxus and... yeah. Hardcore mafioso). Time/Dimension Travel (with as a bit of CU-compliance in plot) — so SPOILERS for most parts.

Author's Note: I haven't watched or read KHR. This is written just 'cause I know the whole freaking story from friends and family and other fanfics (which seem to always have Tsuna as some sort of twin or older brother but never a middle child) and… well. You get this.

REDONE: As of Summer 2015, the first chapter has been revised and redone. Nothing significant really changed... The next chapter will be updated ...soon(?)ish. Think of chapter 2 right now as... bloopers. Sort of. AND YES all of this is being written with knowledge only gained through fanfics (I fell into this fandom because of those lovely fanfics you call crossovers. Ha.) and wikia. I'll get around to watching/reading the anime/manga. Probably later rather than sooner... considering I've spoiled myself...

零

Sawada Tsunayoshi wakes, but training forces his eyes to stay shut and his breath to stay even.

Didn't he just die? Tsuna wonders. He clearly remembers being shot. And maimed. In painful ways that he will try not to think of—

The ceiling is painted like nightfall with glow-in-the-dark pentagrams taped across it when he blinks his eyes open for a second. He hasn't seen such a ceiling since he was into that, "I'm gonna be an astronaut!" phase that quickly left him a few weeks after he turned six. Or seven.

Tsuna lays there, mulling over countless possibilities and scenarios, before he leaps from the warm, blue comforter pulled to his chin and overestimates himself and lands flat on his face.

Quickly getting up with a silent grunt, he realizes that everything in the room seems grander, that the bedstead he just left is tall enough to reach his diaphragm, that when he takes a step forward, he makes barely half the same space of his normal stride and almost stumbles over the pandemonium of the room, and that—

Tsuna is stunned when he glances at the full-body mirror to his left.

Chubby-cheeked and big-eyed and fluffy haired (that, shockingly enough, is even more fluffy than before), Tsuna barely resists the urge to screech for Verde who clearly has had a hand in this because Irie's not bold enough to experiment on him (yet), before, again, his recent shooting and maiming excursion dances through his mindscape.

It takes him nine seconds to realize that this is no joke, eleven seconds that he's actually time travelled into his former body or some parallel's body, and seven seconds to accept it in silent thought.

If Byakuran could have random memories of his past/future/parallel selves, and if Irie, his resident genius, had sent him forward to save his Famiglia into a time paradox that still shouldn't make sense, well, universal displacement isn't all that hard to comprehend. Tsuna decides.

But he makes a mental note to bite Verde's head off anyway if it's actually his fault.

With a sigh he treads downstairs bleary-eyed and stammers a greeting to his mamma (because no matter what universe, Byakuran said he was always a wimp at the start), before Tsuna reels in a double-take as he sees that he apparently has two siblings and, shockingly enough, one's his freaking twin.

Well, almost twin.

They have the same bone structure, face, eyes, hair, everything— except for the colouration. Tsuna knows he has light brown hair (which coincidentally matches that hot café amaretto he sometimes prepares for Reborn when he's not consuming vast amounts of black coffee or straight up espresso), but his "twin" is more like their father: dark blond, hazel-eyed with a touch of blue; he could pass himself off as the Vongolo Primo's son at first glance, with that confident air and charismatic smile.

"Hey, you're actually up for once, Dame-Tsuna!" the — his — twin notices, sending a quick grin in Tsuna's direction.

So, he's moderately close to his brother, Tsuna concludes, once hearing the affectionate tone and not-so-affectionate name call.

"A nightmare woke me up and I face planted to the floor — of course I couldn't sleep longer after that! And don't call me Dame-Tsuna!" the last sentence is a tack-on, automatic, because though Tsuna moved his lips to form the words, he hadn't actually thought to say that.

The blond only grins good-naturedly, "Well until you can pick up your grades, you'll never catch up to me!"

Of course I don't want to catch up to you. I've passed you. But jealousy looks ugly on your face, Hide-nii, and you're older. You should always be better than me. You have to be.

The childish voice is a quiet bell in his mind, and Tsuna is aware that he's either slowly killing the previous Sawada Tsunayoshi in this body, or they're merging.

"Whatever; s'not like I need to get better. I'm passing well enough."

Probably the latter, if his reflexive response is to go by.

"Sawada Hideyoshi! Be nicer to your brother!" Mamma walks in, smilingly, carrying a tray of sunny-side-up eggs and four croissants.

"Here, okaa-san, I'll help."

"Oh, thank you Mitsu-chan!"

Tsuna blinks at the moving mop of dark brown hair walking over to aid their mother, and it's only the child's voice in his head that stops him from leaping, reminding him that this is his younger sibling, dark haired like their mother, blue-eyed like their many-greats-grandfather, and not some child assassin.

It'll take a while, Tsuna realizes with dismay, as he snatches his half-moved arm back from trying to take a gun out of a non-existent jacket, but he'll make most of this life, most of their lives a childish voice reciprocates, as it should have been lived.

He narrows his eyes minutely.

As it will be lived.

一

Reborn watched the Sawada family household from the shadows and frowned.

The Young Lion of Vongola was right. Sawada "Hide" Hideyoshi would become a magnificent Boss. He had a sturdy strength and …adequate enough skill, a subconscious kindness to others like his underclassmen and children in general, and a respect to those he deemed respectable. Hideyoshi even looked similar to the first generation Vongola Primo, if with darker blond hair and browner eyes, and a bit more naïve outlook to life.

But that wouldn't matter once he became Vongolo Decimo.

Reborn knew that this boy was practically a perfect heir to groom. Above average in all academics and athletics unparalleled within the 'all-rounder' type, popular to a fault when his locker was filled to the brim with pink notes and white letters, and even a proud normal family to boot. Generally these 'perfect' people types had abusive homes and/or a bully streak hidden a mile wide within a kind façade, but it wasn't so in Sawada Hideyoshi; he genuinely loved his brothers and mother, and always had time for both school life, friendships and family.

But, then there was the 'normal' family.

Nana wasn't the problem. She was caring and hardworking, if a bit gullible and oblivious in regards to life in general, but she loved all her children; that much was obvious, though, she tended to be a bit more doting towards the youngest.

Not that Reborn blamed her. All parents had a 'favourite' child, even if they didn't say so to anyone; any proper father or mother wouldn't show off this favouritism, obviously. They would simply, secretly, spend a bit more time with their favourite, talk a more, just those little things that not many noticed.

Reborn was not one of those many.

Sawada "Mitsu" Mitsuhide was gentle, easy-going and peaceful, like a calm waterway to Hideyoshi's flaming youth. Mitsuhide was also ten-times more studious, with a perfect roll-call attendance and straight A's that never went below a ninety percent. With a brilliant, tactical mind, Mitsuhide was also a celebrated shogi champion with a fascination in computers. He wasn't the greatest in athletics, just a bit bellow average, but he made up for it through community services and interaction through sports management. Though not as popular as his year-elder brother, Mitsuhide gained secret admirers from both genders, mostly from his delicate features, large eyes superimposed by rimless glasses, and dark bob-cut brown hair that made him look like an androgynous, mini-me Nana.

But if Reborn was being honest, Mitsuhide probably didn't swing either way. He never blushed with girls or guys nearby and pretty much had the emotional capacity of a rock.

Of course, that wasn't the problem Reborn had with the Sawada Household.

It was Sawada "Tsuna" Tsunayoshi.

The 'middle' child by a few minutes, the often overlooked, who was neither Iemitsu's pride like Hideyoshi (the Lion always had that smug grin on when he spoke of his eldest) or Nana's joy like Mitsuhide (who always lent a helpful hand for errands or who was always aiding anyone about).

Tsunayoshi was a conundrum unto itself. At school, he was always alone, not a high or medium or low-level on the middle school hierarchy. It was like he wasn't even on the social ladder. He was adequate in sports and average in academics and pretty much everything else. However, here was the paradox: when with peers, popular or unpopular, he easily fit in — adding comments, adding ideas, anything really — but he could also easily be left out, without care or notice.

And that freaked Reborn out.

Tsunayoshi was one of the most popular boys in Namimori's twin brother and yet, no one cared or remembered that fact. No one questioned him, positively or negatively. And after a day of stalking, even Reborn almost forgot himself, forgot the fact he was tailing the target, when Tsunayoshi so easily blended into the crowds.

After three hours of surveillance, one for each of the siblings, Reborn learned tidbits: like how Hideyoshi had a habit with tapping rhythms when he was bored, couldn't lie to save his life, (though he could spin an unbelievable story for someone else and make it believable,) took to the boxing club to beat up anyone who belittled his two brothers and not because of Kyoko, his apparent crush, and really, really hated pickled fruit. He knew Mitsuhide was pretending to be right-handed when he was really ambidextrous, couldn't express as much emotion in a hour than he could in a minute with Tsunayoshi, had a hidden hobby in hacking and not gaming or NetShogi, and secretly liked 'Tsuna-nii' more than 'Hide-nii' (probably because the latter was always busy doing something else).

All this and more, and yet, there were only three things he could name off about Sawada Tsunayoshi: he loved his brothers, he was average in everything, and he could disappear within a second of inattention on Reborn's part.

And that really pissed Reborn off.

二

Sawada Mitsuhide waited at the gates, waving at any familiar upperclassmen and lowerclassmen alike, trading smiles and farewells as Namimori Middle streamed out while searching for Tsuna-nii.

Mitsu already knew Hide-nii was at some training session with Sasagawa-senpai and the rest of the boxing club, probably trying to impress Kyoko-senpai, who'd be meeting up later after dance club like every Tuesday — wait… it was Wednesday… so Hide-nii was probably at Kendo practice... — but Tsuna-nii was always free after class. He never took to any extracurricular activities since it wasn't mandatory at Namimori Middle, unlike most schools, and Mitsu sometimes wondered what Tsuna-nii even did with all that free time.

Mitsu was part of three clubs: treasurer of TechEd, manager of the baseball team, and a player in the shogi club. But, since baseball practice was cancelled today (the school was apparently trimming the field since they messed up the mowing on the weekend), Mitsu decided to wait for Tsuna-nii to walk home together.

Surprisingly, there was sight of dark blond and coffee-brown hair coming out of the school doors at the same time, making Mitsu blink and watch the brothers walk out in perfect paralleling steps, like mirrors.

Even though they looked identical (disregarding the hair and eye colour), the Sawada twins were, almost literally, day and night. On the right, bright-eyed and beaming, Hide-nii was babbling with a horde of his classmates (mostly female, Mitsu noticed) and gesturing flamboyantly to emphasize whatever point he was on about, which made heads turn like plants to the sun. On the left, silent and solitary, Tsuna-nii maneuvered himself around the flocking students with his strange natural grace, without acknowledgement or greetings or apologies from any passersby; he was akin to the shadows: there, overlooked, and forgotten.

Mitsu loved those two. Really. But Mitsu could never tell if Hide-nii was sometimes faking those ever-present grins or if Tsuna-nii's self-exiling, self-inserting, self-exiling, self-inserting and repeat was really good for his mental health.

Humans needed interaction. Didn't they learn that back in history class one time, the whole reason civilization existed and stuff? Hide-nii had his close friends with Mochida-senpai (who was a total jerk before all three of them set him straight) and whomever was in the Kendo club and boxing club, while Mitsu had TechEd buddies and Shogi rivals. Mitsu even hung out with some of the baseball players after a game when there was free time from planning their next simulation or game plan, and Mitsu was sure Hide-nii sometimes went on dates with a few of his fangirls to placate the Sawada Offical Fanclub Team (also known as SOFT… after their hair, apparently… and that wasn't creepy at all, nooo...)—

But Tsuna-nii had no one.

And Mitsu marvelled how Tsuna-nii could keep playing the role as a nobody, a shadow, a faceless 'one-of-the-crowd' types when his name was Sawada and there was a freaking fanclub titled after their surname.

…if Tsuna-nii was secretly some sort of undercover superspy, Mitsu wouldn't be surprised. At all.

"Mitsu-chan," Tsuna-nii greeted with a smile reserved only for his youngest sibling, appearing at Mitsu's side like he hadn't just been ten metres away seconds ago. Mitsu fought the urge to reciprocate the grin as they began walking.

"Tsuna-nii," Mitsu acknowledged, before pausing. "You know I hate that —chan suffix." Mitsu didn't sulk. And that wasn't a whine. Only Tsuna-nii and their mother ever called Mitsu that anymore and so... it was just... irking. Sorta. Maybe.

"Aww, but those don't suit you, Mitsu-chan," Tsuna-nii reached out and mussed Mitsu's perfectly combed hair into a mess not too unlike the elder brothers' gravity defying hair. Mitsu let out a silent huff and quickly flattened the hair back, luckily patting it to some sense of normalcy before the female members of the photography club crept any closer.

"Hey, Dame-Tsuna! Mitsu-'to, why didn't you two wait for me?" Hide-nii sprinted from his fan crowd to their side, pouting with his lower lip puckered out.

Tsuna-nii snorted derisively, "And get mowed down by your ever-present fanclub?" he shoved one of his hands into his pocket, while the other slung his schoolbag over his shoulder. "Nah, we'll just wait 'til you're free to hang with us."

"You hurt me bro, you hurt me," Hide-nii placed a hand over his heart and wiped a non-existent tear from his face.

Mitsu frowned, "And calling Tsuna-nii dame isn't hurtful?" It was baffling as to why Hide-nii always did that, even though Tsuna-nii had slowly pulled himself up to at least an average academic level ever since he turned eight.

Hide-nii waved his hand, "Mah, mah, it's an affectionate nickname, Mitsu. For old times' sake — right, Dame-Tsuna?"

Tsuna-nii rolled his eyes but remained quiet, a small twitch, barely noticeable, catching his left lip.

Mitsu also never understood that: Tsuna-nii's seemingly endless patience and tolerance. Nothing ever fazed him, and at times, Mitsu imagined Tsuna-nii as the eldest of them instead of Hide-nii, especially when their blond brother acted so childish, contrasting his brunet brother's wise aura and calm advice.

Changing the subject, Mitsu inquired detachedly, "Don't you usually have Kendo practice today, Hide-nii?"

They turned a corner when Hide-nii answered with a grin. "Yep, but Kensuke and I had a… conversation over …girls, during lunch, and, well, he may be kicking me off the Kendo team," he scratched his jaw sheepishly.

Mitsu noticed Tsuna-nii stiffening before their brother asked quietly, "…was this over Kyoko-chan?"

Hide-nii faltered in his steps, a look of surprise flashing before his ever present smile returned. The blond tilted his head to the side, "How did you know that, Tsuna?"

Tsuna-nii wasn't paying attention to either of them anymore. Mitsu could tell. Despite Tsuna-nii reasonable answer, face to face, about how the gossip grapevine at school was always in overdrive and how everyone kept to date with the Sawada Hideyoshi, duh ...and etcetera, Mitsu noticed the faraway look in brother's gaze, saw that flicker of something in those large brown eyes, as if he was seeing past Hide-nii to something else of grave importance.

Tsuna-nii was always a mysterious sort, like an old man in a child's body, always lost in his thoughts.

But Mitsu wouldn't change it, because this was what made Tsuna, well, Tsuna-nii. The best brother in the whole wide world.

"Tadaima," they all greeted when they reached home, crammed into the foyer to take off their shoes.

Okaa-san popped her head through the first doorframe, the one leading to the living room, smiling warmly at all her children with a soup spoon in her hand waving.

"Welcome home, Hide-kun, Tsuna-kun, Mitsu-chan!"

Mitsu immediately smelled the miso soup aroma wafting through from the kitchen, and knowing their mother, okaa-san would be throwing together Hide-nii's favourite udon noodles and steamed veggies since it was his selection today. Tomorrow would be Tsuna-nii's, the next would be Mitsu's, and the day after would be okaa-san's choice before rotation began again.

"Here, okaa-san, I'll help," Mitsu intoned, dropping the heavy schoolbag on the couch while bypassing Hide-nii's sprint for the remote and Tsuna-nii's brisk pace towards the coat hanger.

"Oh, thank you, Mitsu-chan!"

For some reason, there was this strange sense of déjà-vu, making Mitsu still from arguing about the stupid —chan suffix, before Tsuna-nii's horrible hair-ruffling habit knocked Mitsu out of stupor.

"I'll help out too, 'kaa-chan," Tsuna-nii smiled down, and Mitsu wondered when this stupid body would ever shoot up to the elder Sawada brothers' height. Maybe when it finally happened, 'kaa-chan and nii-chan would finally start adding the —kun suffix to Mitsu's name. Really, those two were already short for their ages, making Mitsu the weirdest one, the midget of the family and of the classes at school.

When halfway through adding in the tofu blocks and seaweed bits into the hot miso, 'kaa-chan spoke up.

"Oh, my… I just remembered!" she turned to her children, "A home tutor is coming today!"

Mitsu momentarily froze from stirring the pot, noticing Hide-nii whirling around on the couch to face them with a wide-eyed look, but Tsuna-nii continued cutting up the barbecue pork, completely unruffled.

"Home tutor!?" Hide-nii cried as their mother hunted out a white paper sheet from her pink apron.

"There was an interesting flyer in the mailbox," she said happily, before reading out: "'Will raise your kid to be the new leader of the next generation! Grade and subject doesn't matter,' signed, 'Reborn.'" Okaa-san smiled at them all, waving the leaflet, "Isn't it great! I've never seen a promotion like this before."

"Obviously it's a scam, 'kaa-san!" Hide-nii tried to butt in, but their mother was undeterred.

"It's probably a tutor from a professional business school for young men! All that's needed to pay is a place to stay, twenty-four hours, until you're all properly educated! I've always wanted a teacher like this for you—"

"I'm getting perfectly good grades, and so is Mitsu-uto! Maybe Dame-Tsuna needs it, but his aren't that bad either! Average! There's nothing he's good at anyway—"

"Ciaossu."

三

Sawada Hideyoshi blinked several times.

He rubbed them with balled fists, just in case, but nope. It was still there.

It being an awfully well-dressed, black-eyed, curly-haired, fedora-wearing toddler.

"Wha— What's a baby doing in our house!?" he cried, backpedalling like a crab on the couch.

"How did you get in here, little boy?" Hide heard Mitsu-uto ask monotonously, but with a kind edge, after walking over and crouching down to its level.

"Maybe we left the door unlocked," suggested Tsuna as he stepped forward into the living room, wringing his hands out as if he just washed them. His twin turned to the baby. "Hey, are you lost little boy?"

"I am not a little boy. I'm Reborn, the home tutor."

"Pfft," Hide tried to muffle his snort and failed. "The home tutor?! No wonder that flyer sounded so fake — a baby made it!" He rolled over with laughter, before teasing, "Hey, Dame-Tsuna, why don't you take some lessons from him? Obviously Mitsu-uto and I don't have anything to learn from it—Oof!"

Despite Kendo and boxing instincts, Hide obviously was not expecting a painful kick to the gut from a kid not even reaching his knees and promptly blacked out.

Reborn sniffed. Hideyoshi was certainly not as strong as he'd originally thought. That would need to be worked on. There were plenty of children in the mafia, some in disguise and some not-so, and if Hide wasn't always on his guard… It'd be fatal, especially when this small kick knocked him out so easily.

"Where's his room?" asked Reborn innocently, though he already knew the answer.

But then his eyes sharpened as the youngest Sawada, just a little under five-feet, stood in front of him, arms crossed and glaring suspiciously.

Hmm. So the boy wasn't as gullible as the mother.

"You just knocked out my brother. I don't think a baby is supposed to be capable of... that."

The boy was shaking with fear to the trained eye, and Reborn was impressed. So, the blue-eyed midget was just as protective of his siblings as the one passed out on the floor. There was potential there. Maybe it'd be okay to allow Mitsuhide into the Famiglia as …hmm… perhaps CEDEF leader once their father stepped down.

…but then he'd have to leave Tsunayoshi — who, honestly, was still an unknown — in the dark about Vongola since Iemitsu wanted at least one child to stay with Nana.

Reborn mulled it over within a millisecond. Actually, the Young Lion of Vongola didn't explicitly say that he couldn't speak of the mafia business to the children. Yes, he said so about his wife, but it'd only been implied about his children.

(Honestly, even if he does or doesn't tell, the mafia will come upon the Sawada household no matter the circumstances. The Lion isn't the brightest to think he can hide away his family from his famiglia and enemies alike. One day — on that one off chance day — Nana and whichever child leftover will be killed and it'll be the husband's fault that they were never told. Never trained.)

He'll work around that.

"Help me carry Hideyoshi up to his room and I'll explain."

Nana had startled when her eldest fell to the ground, but in the end, had simply taken the whole situation in stride and had quickly stepped back into the kitchen to attend the boiling over noodles and bubbling soup. After Reborn's comment, however, she went in view and smiled at them over the countertop. Reborn did not miss the mama-bear glint as she voiced, "Second floor, first door to the right. Please be careful."

With them.

Reborn didn't misunderstand that undertone. Even if he looked harmless, Nana had just seen him take down her child, and no matter how gullible, she wasn't a complete idiot. Reborn wasn't too worried though. The human mind won't jump to farfetched conclusions, and he'll let her stir for a while and rally her trust. He quickly made way up the stairs with that in mind, effortlessly carrying Hideyoshi over his shoulder like the numerous experiences with rescues and hostages back in his homeland. Looking down the hallway, he saw, indeed, Hideyoshi's room to the first door to the right, what with his name plate placed upon it with a large boxing poster posted onto it. Beside that door, a little ways down, was the master bedroom, likely where Nana slept in, and across was Mitsuhide's door, held slightly ajar and revealing a spick and span room with a laptop on the study beside the windowsill. And beside it—

"You know, it'd probably have been easier if Mitsu-chan and I carried him. That, and my brother wouldn't be waking up with bruising all over from the stairs."

Reborn withheld the urge to jump and snap out one of his many hidden guns into view and stiffly, minutely, turned towards Tsunayoshi, who, gallingly, hummed a tune as he picked up his twin and easily coaxed Mitsuhide into their brother's room, beckoning for Reborn to follow.

Reborn stilled with narrowed eyes, unsure of what he was exactly feeling in this maelstrom of emotion.

Because no matter the excuses, up to and until that point, he had nearly completely forgotten the middle child of the Sawada Household.

Happy belated New Years! Just so you all know, this was a wing-it story that I probably won't be updating soon. Or ever. I'm not really into the KHR fandom anymore, and I have two words going on for the next chapter and, strangely, I have another KHR story that sort of split off from this. So... anyway... I'd love to have some feedback! Thanks for reading! —rayningnight